To make meaning of this moment, we need more than stories.
Lisa Taylor, CCDP ????
CEO of Challenge Factory. Author of The Talent Revolution: Longevity and the Future of Work. 2022 Canada's Most Powerful Women: WXN Top 100 Award Winner.
Aug 24, 2022
I don’t know if Lisa LaFlamme’s dismissal was a result of ageism.??
I do know it’s a big deal that, within minutes of her?Twitter sign-off, Canadians from coast to coast to coast began talking about ageism.
In that moment, thousands of Canadians related to Lisa LaFlamme on a human level and found themselves, suddenly, remarkably,?visible.?
“Her story is my story, or my mother’s story, or my neighbour’s story.”
Ageism is so prevalent in workplaces that it is a common and shared experience—even if, or perhaps?because, it is so rarely discussed.?
More than a week later, and Lisa LaFlamme is still the story in Canada. On Monday, Dove commercialized the discussion, launching a campaign that encourages everyone to “go grey” by changing their profile pictures and logos to greyscale.??
The mixed reactions to this campaign have been interesting. Some laud the company for taking a stand. Others suggest that altering profile photos to appear grey-haired is unnecessary, since there are millions of naturally grey-haired Canadians ready to share their photos unaltered. They also criticize that the model in?the?campaign is a younger brunette using a greyscale filter.?
?None of us in the general public truly know the extent to which ageism (or sexism) were factors in Lisa LaFlamme’s dismissal. But the reaction does indicate a few things that we know for sure:??
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This last point is the most powerful and important. Lisa LaFlamme speaking publicly started the conversation. Contributions by others who have experienced similar treatment add human interest and weight to the story. But real systemic change happens when those not experiencing the prejudice also take up the challenge to call it out.?
Ageism is a prejudice against our future selves
As our friend? Ashton Applewhite ?says, ageism is a prejudice against our future selves. Every single one of us is ageing. What if those of us who haven’t crossed the threshold into “older age” fought?today?so our future selves don’t experience ageism tomorrow??
It’s not up to older workers to solve the challenge of ageism in the workplace. It’s up to leaders, managers, and employees of all ages to get better at identifying everyday comments, policies, and cultures that sustain ageist viewpoints and unequal relations of power. I talk about some simple, practical examples of these in this?CBC?interview.
Our leaders in the fight against ageism don’t have to be old. The goal shouldn’t be to profile as many stories as possible. The goal should be to learn from the stories, understand the nature of the issue, and champion change. Here, Challenge Factory’s 10+ years of focus on?age and workplaces?is valuable. We know that personal stories are powerful but not enough on their own for leaders to take the risk and construct new, updated approaches to talent management, training and development, succession planning, and intergenerational workforce development. Our organizations today are based on obsolete workforce and career models.?
I lay out the steps for CEOs, HR leaders, and frontline managers to dismantle and replace outdated organizational design in?The Talent Revolution: Longevity and the Future of Work. These changes require a bit of trust and a lot of courage by both the people experiencing ageism and the managers who don’t want to be ageist, but are working within the systems they’ve inherited.??
This isn’t just about the decision to let your hair go grey.
It’s about shaping a Future of Work in which everyone is valued, no matter their age. In the end, the real opportunity of this moment will have been realized when the airwaves are flooded with new, better stories—because we’ve left behind outdated career biases.?
https://challengefactory.ca/ageism/
Career Strategy | Career Coach | Senior Reverse Recruiter | Certified Interview Trainer | Certified Salary Negotiation Trainer | Generative AI for Business | Job Search Strategy
2 年There is something very interesting about Ageism: For all of the attention that other forms of discrimination receive, Ageism seems like it is the most accepted. And I honestly believe I know why: Advertising Back in the 1960's a toy company tried the unique idea of advertising to children, instead of adults. The parents found this behavior offensive, but it worked because the more a child was told: "You are smarter than your elders, if you own this product" ....the more parents had to deal with a child demanding it. And that behavior STILL exists today. EVERYWHERE. In all advertising you see: "Kids are smart. Parents are goofy and out of touch." (BS btw) Advertising has ALWAYS shaped cultural trends and made certain behaviors seem ok. And the saddest part: Ageism is practiced by people of their same age. I just had an argument with my 74 year-old stepmom recently about hiring older employees. She kept telling me, "It's a bad idea" mainly because it is what she was taught years ago. Just summing up this rant: Advertising plants the seeds of Ageism. People's hypocrisy waters it. I am keeping my promise to never do that to anyone
President & Co-founder at AscendX Digital | Global Marketing & Business Executive
2 年"Ageism is a prejudice against our future selves" #keepthegrey
I turn Founders & CEOs into business Storytellers getting them on the world's biggest stages | 100's of success stories Globally | Executive Coach | Speaker | Author | Facilitator | Coin Carrier
2 年Thanks for this Lisa Taylor, such an important conversation. We’ve been talking a lot about the importance of age diversity in the DEI space. Too many are not being allowed to use their knowledge because the perception is that they are past their prime. In a world where we will see average lifespan approach or even surpass 100 within the coming 20-30 years, we need to rethink ‘old age’ and the concept of ‘retirement’. We older folk still have lots to contribute! #thoughtleader #sage #storyteller
Technology Services Leader
2 年Spot on Lisa!
Founder + CEO at What's neXT 50
2 年Well articulated Lisa Taylor! I couldn't agree more, particularly your last point...real change will occur when the "unaffected" stand up and advocate for the "affected". We are beginning to see this happen with other societal injustices like Black Lives Matter movement and with Indigenous populations. We need corporate leaders to start the conversation and make "ageism" as part of their DEI strategy. Forward thinking organizations such as Unilever, Sanofi, Publicis Groupe, Phoenix Group, CVS Health, Aviva and Walmart are testing and learning from innovative strategies that create age friendly multigenerational workplaces. On Sept 19th, What’s neXT?! is hosting a global discussion moderated by author, broadcaster and TED speaker, Carl Honoré and featuring three global organizations that are tackling ageism in their workplace. Join us and register at ?https://bit.ly/3dq8TCv